Ma Yu Ching's Bucket Chicken House (Chinese: 马豫兴桶子鸡; pinyin: Mǎ Yùxīng Tǒngzi Jī), located in Kaifeng, China, is by some accounts the world's oldest restaurant, although the Guinness Book of World Records recognizes Cafe Botin in Spain as the oldest restaurant continuously operating in the world. It opened for business during the Jin Dynasty in AD 1153. Having survived numerous wars, invasions, and dynasty changes, as of May 2012, the business is still serving noodles, rice, and roast chicken.
It is known that restaurants existed in Kaifeng before 1153, since there is documentation of them during the Northern era (960–1127) of the Song Dynasty.
History
Traditionally, "bucket chicken" is believed to originate from roast chickens sold in the markets of Kaifeng, when it was the capital city during the Song Dynasty. The Ma family began trading in bucket chicken in Nanjing, in today's Jiangsu Province, after the Song Dynasty moved to the south.
In 1855, Ma Youren, a descendent of the original Mr Ma moved back to his ancestral home in the village of Laodong, Kaifeng, bringing with him a bucket of the traditional sauce. There, Ma Youren established the "Ma Yuxing Roast Chicken Shop" in 1864, specialising in bucket chicken. In 1954, a branch store was established in Zhengzhou when that city became the capital of Henan province.